Criminal Law and Procedure
Elements and Burdens
Every crime has elements the state must prove beyond a reasonable doubt: the act (actus reus), the mental state (mens rea), causation, and any required result or attendant circumstances. Learn to break statutes into elements-this is how exam questions are built. Know the difference between specific intent (a conscious objective to achieve the result) and general intent (intent to do the act). Distinguish crimes against persons, property crimes (theft, burglary, robbery), and inchoate offenses (attempt, conspiracy, solicitation).
Procedure from Stop to Charge
Understand the progression: reasonable suspicion supports an investigatory stop; probable cause supports arrest and search warrants; a warrantless search requires a recognized exception (consent, search incident to arrest, plain view, exigency, automobile). Know arrest procedures-when force is justified to effect arrest, the requirement to inform the arrestee of the reason, and booking. Understand the right to counsel attaches at critical stages, and the role of initial appearance and bail.
Traps and Rule of Thumb
Traps include confusing robbery (taking from a person by force or fear) with burglary (unauthorized entry of a structure with intent to commit a felony or theft therein), and treating reasonable suspicion as probable cause. Another trap is assuming an arrest always requires a warrant.
Worked example: A suspect enters a closed store at night through a broken window and is caught inside with no property. Charge analysis: the entry plus intent to commit theft inside supports burglary even without a completed theft-the crime is complete at entry with the requisite intent. Rule of thumb: match facts to each element, not to the label.